The past cannot be changed by you. Examine the past to see what lessons can be learned, and apply those lessons so the future you has better life experiences. For good or for bad, we have the ability to remember and think back on our past. This has helped us thrive as humans. Reliving past memories and heavily focusing on those events will be treated as a disadvantage, but it is great to still look back and learn. 

A common sentiment: nostalgic yearning for the past and the sense that the present doesn’t compare well against the past. “In many human societies, the past is mythologized,” says Ze Hong, a behavioral scientist at the University of Macau who has studied historical examples of decline narratives. “The present world is often viewed as the product of a gradual decline from this mythologized ‘golden age.’” It is a coping mechanism, in a way. 

Why We Think Our Past Was Better Than Our Present 

There are many explanations for these ideas. One of them is absorbed with a form of bias known as “rosy retrospection,” which is our tendency to recall memories–even those that were traumatizing or unpleasant–with fondness, care, and appreciation. When we typically look back on our past, we tend to down play the negative moments. On the other hand, we tend to focus on the negative aspects of things happening in the present. This combination gives us the sense of a slow decline that leads us to go deep inside our minds and live in nostalgia. This nostalgia flourishes during moments of struggle and instability, allowing us to sink into our changing minds. 

“Individuals and groups often turn to the past for psychological comfort during times of profound uncertainty.” That’s according to researchers at Claremont Graduate University in California, who led a 2025 study on the subject. They make the case that during the COVID pandemic and its up swells in social and political strife, nostalgia served as a “collective coping mechanism” that helped people connect to “a perceived simpler, more stable era.” Some people even refer to COVID as the “nostalgia bump,” as most reverted back to loving physical media, older music, movies, decades-old shows and sitcoms, and much more.

The fading affect bias is another psychological and social instinct that sways our brains into believing our past was a more peaceful time. It is essentially a psychological phenomenon where the negative emotions tied to past memories fade much faster and more intensely than the positive emotions tied to more happy and pleasant memories. Holding onto intense negative feelings causes stress for the body and mind, so to save energy, your brain lets go of bad emotional charges in order to keep your mood stable. 

We remember our past in a beautiful, bright light, when in reality, our memory is deceiving. However, nostalgia does feel like a great way to cope with our modern lives and our childhood.

Do you miss your past? Let us know your thoughts below!